Total systemwide sales of the top eight chicken chains in 2011 were an estimated $13.859 billion, 4.5 percent ahead of the $13.265 billion in 2010 and 6.9 percent more than the $12.965 billion in 2009, according to Nation’s Restaurant News annual restaurant report. Estimated sales and market share for each of the eight chains last year were as follows:

KFC $4.600 billion (33.19 percent)

Chick-fil-A $3.993 billion (28.8 percent)

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen $1.704 billion (12.30 percent)

Church’s Chicken $864 million (6.24 percent)

Zaxby’s $778 million (6.06 percent)

Bojangles’ Famous Chicken ‘n Biscuits $767 million (5.54 percent)

El Pollo Loco $558 million (4.04 percent)

Boston Market $532 million (3.84 percent)

Together, the eight chains accounted for 6.74 percent of the total sales for the latest year of the top 100 foodservice chains. Also, there were, in the United States last year, 11,137 stores for the combined eight chains, 1.6 percent less than the 11,316 units in the preceding year. Chick-fil-A leads the group with the highest sales per store, $2.56 million, compared with the eight chain average of $1.36 million. Chick-fil-A also leads in growth in the U.S. systemwide sales from last year’s, 13.20 percent, followed by Zaxby’s 8.02 percent, and Bojangles’ 7.66 percent.